Elections and Democracy Based upon Is This Any Way to Run a Democratic Election? By Stephen J. Wayne, 2007 CQ Press

What good are elections? Elections tie citizens to their government Elections are a means by which the public can hold these officials accountable for their actions Elections keep officials responsive

Voters need information Information informs judgment A free press facilitates the acquisition of information Sound judgment is critical because elections confer legitimacy on government and what it does

Criteria for democratic elections Political equality Universal suffrage Meaningful choice Free flow of information about candidates, issues, and parties

Democratic electoral systems Plurality rule in single-member districts The candidate who wins the most votes within an electoral district wins. Advantage: simple, direct Disadvantage: Minorities less likely to be represented Proportional voting Winners determined in proportion to the vote that they or their party receives Advantage: fair, more accurate representation of minorities Disadvantage: majoritarian sentiment difficult to discern.

Democratic electoral systems Election procedures are not neutral They benefit some at the expense of others This conflict creates ongoing tensions within the democratic electoral system It’s politics!

Part II: Tensions within a democratic electoral system Tensions exist within a democratic political system between: Political liberty and equality Majority rule and majority rights A free press and an informed electorate

Liberty versus equality Democracy is based on the consent of the governed, and the ability to give or withdraw consent is critical Political liberty: the right to vote one’s choice, the right not to vote, the right to choose without duress Problem: Personal freedom may undermine equity

Majority rule versus minority rights If every vote is equal, those with the most votes should win Problem: plurality voting systems over-represent the majority Problem: proportional voting tends to inhibit the building and maintenance of a governing majority

A free press versus an informed electorate The public cannot assess candidates without necessary information Problem: most providers of information are stakeholders, which affects the information they provide The resolution of this problem rests on the foundation of a free press Necessarily unfettered Not necessarily neutral

Summary What is a representative democracy? How can we provide citizens with equal opportunities to influence the shape of government without restricting their freedom to pursue self interests and to use their resources? How can we provide electoral mechanisms that are, simultaneously, Efficient? Representative? Effective? Accountable? Dynamic? Deliberative?

Dilemmas Universal suffrage versus non-voting Many choices of candidates versus few good choices Equal counting off all votes versus lack of equal benefit Free press versus biased and irresponsible press

Discussion Questions How nearly universal must suffrage be for the popular will to be heard? Can elections be structured to reflect simultaneously both majority and minority views? What current electoral issues pit individual liberty against political equality? To what extent is the democratic goal of an informed electorate that makes enlightened judgments on election day realistic, and to what extent is it even necessary? Can the news media serve simultaneously the informational needs of the electorate and the profit motive of media owners? What are the most serious electoral problems today that threaten the democratic character of the political system?